Check out the Trailer for George Clooney's THE MONUMENTS MEN!

A trailer has arrived for George Clooney's next directorial effort, THE MONUMENTS MEN. Set in World War II, this historical piece tells the story of an unlikely platoon of soldiers tasked by FDR to go into Germany and recover the various art pieces that the Nazis had been acquiring throughout the war. Clooney co-wrote the script with Grant Heslov (THE IDES OF MARCH; GOOD NIGHT, AND GOOD LUCK), based on the book by Robert M. Edsel.

While he trailer looks to be selling the movie partly on the inclusion of everybody's favorite Ocean's Eleven-style banter, it looks like it could be a really interesting story. These guys weren't soldiers - they were art historians, museum directors and curators, tasked with a mission of incredible cultural significance. As Clooney's character says in the trailer, ”if you destroy an entire generation of people’s culture, it’s as if they never existed."

That being said, it does look like the writing team is aiming for something a bit more light-hearted than some of their other recent efforts, and isn't taking the heavy-handed approach with this story. In an interview with USA Today, Clooney states, "Grant and I were looking to do a film that was less cynical than a lot of the films we do."

Plus, when you have a cast that includes George Clooney, Matt Damon, Bill Murray, John Goodman, Bob Balaban and Cate Blanchett, sign me up.

Here's the full plot synopsis:

Based on the true story of the greatest treasure hunt in history, The Monuments Men is an action-thriller focusing on an unlikely World War II platoon, tasked by FDR with going into Germany to rescue artistic masterpieces from Nazi thieves and returning them to their rightful owners. It would be an impossible mission: with the art trapped behind enemy lines, and with the German army under orders to destroy everything as the Reich fell, how could these guys – seven museum directors, curators, and art historians, all more familiar with Michelangelo than the M-1 – possibly hope to succeed? But as the Monuments Men, as they were called, found themselves in a race against time to avoid the destruction of 1000 years of culture, they would risk their lives to protect and defend mankind’s greatest achievements.

THE MONUMENTS MEN opens on December 18th. Check out the trailer below: